Your eyes are red from a lack of sleep and too much screen time. You need to be smarter and try harder. Remember that you chose to study public relations for a reason. Recognize that feeling overwhelmed and unsure of your future is normal, but you may just need some direction.
PR students/aspirants should apply these six habits to make the most of their time in college and get ready to take on the demands of a PR career.
Habit 1: Be more active.
Maybe you haven’t had any internships/practical experience yet. Don’t worry, that means that it’s time to look around and create opportunities for yourself. The beauty of PR work is that EVERY organization benefits from it.
Think about how your PR skills could benefit an organization. Approach them and offer to create a social media page, help plan their next event or anything else you see fit.
Habit 2: Begin with the end in mind.
Think about your career goals. If you don’t know exactly “what you want to be when you grow up,” that’s fine. Start by brainstorming, try making a list of career paths that sound interesting to you, things you’re good at, things you don’t like, etc.
Next, step back and make a concrete plan to learn more about your preferences and achieve your goals. If you want to work on a political campaign in the future, for example, try researching local upcoming elections and see if you can help with a candidate’s campaign. Don’t just randomly take an internship or job; instead, actively seek out ones that will get you closer to your end goal.
Habit 3: Put first things first.
If you think getting straight A’s should be your top priority, think again.
PR pro’s shares that when a potential employer looks at your resume and sees good grades with no experience, they will ask themselves “what have you done other than study for these exams?” They urged undergrads too, “Go above and beyond and make sure you do more than just your course workload.”
Some companies like Google don’t even look at GPA in the hiring process because they value soft and technical skills more. This doesn’t mean you should start ditching class, but make sure to go out and make yourself a better candidate by developing real skills as you put Habits 1 and 2 into action.
Habit 4: Think win-win.
Avoid comparing yourself to your fellow PR students: they are your teammates, NOT your enemies. If they get an award or an internship/position you wanted, celebrate with them, and remember you will have other opportunities. You should “think of the perspective: we’re all working to better the world we live in. And secondly, know that everybody has different paths to success, whatever success is. And they’re very, very rarely linear.”
Habit 5: Seek first to understand.
“Someone once said, there are two things you need in your career to be successful: find mentors and find sponsors.”
Seek the advice of professionals who can become your mentors. Beyond that, think about how these people can recommend you for jobs. These could be college professors, staff from your on-campus PR lab, connections from extracurricular activities, speakers at events, and more. Get connected with these people on LinkedIn and consider asking them for informational interviews.
Habit 6: Synergize.
Synergy means creative cooperation. PR involves lots of group work, synergizing with people who have different strengths and viewpoints from you.
Don’t wait until you begin your career to start synergizing—look for opportunities in class and client projects to ask for others’ viewpoints. Vocalize when you see strengths in others and when you like their ideas. If you’re struggling with your self-confidence, try making a list of your strengths to recognize what you bring to the table.
After reading these habits, you should realize that you are smart enough and you can become qualified for those internships. No matter where you are in your PR undergraduate career, start to apply these six habits to your life. You’ll use your time more effectively and find peace of mind as you press forward to a fruitful career in public relations.
